Washington — Washington (AFP) – supreme court We will hear from Catholic preschools who say Colorado violated their religious rights by excluding them from a state-funded program because of their admissions policies.
On Monday, the court agreed to accept the appeal filed by the Catholic Diocese of St. Mary, which is supported by the Republican Trump administration.
The facilities, joined by the Archdiocese of Denver, argue that it is unconstitutional to bar them from the taxpayer-funded comprehensive preschool program because of religious restrictions on accepting LGBTQ+ families and children.
The state said religious schools are welcome to participate but must follow nondiscrimination laws. The program was created by a 2020 ballot measure and provides public funding for free preschool at centers chosen by parents.
It’s the latest religious rights case before the conservative-majority court, which has backed other claims of religious discrimination while taking a more skeptical view of LGBTQ+ rights.
As part of the case, the court will consider narrowing the scope of a landmark 1990 decision on the spiritual use of peyote, an agave plant that contains a hallucinogen called mescaline. That opinion, written by conservative Justice Antonin Scalia, found that religious practices do not create exceptions to broadly applicable laws.
The justices rejected a campaign by the schools, along with a Catholic family in Colorado, to overturn the ruling.
The case will be heard in the fall.
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